God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.-Chapter 912: For the Curtain Call, The End of the World as we Know It (3).

Chapter 912: For the Curtain Call, The End of the World as we Know It (3).

Sheathing his sword, Lukas glared down an outpost that was located at the edge of what had once been the Dome of Sands.

The air here was still dry and a haze of ash floated around.

Even here, they had to burn the bodies of humans that had fallen or else they ran the risk of them suddenly reawakening as the living dead.

"To think we’ve been pushed this far back. How humiliating..."

He clicked his tongue.

"I don’t think there’s anything to be humiliated but."

He raised a brow and turned around. Gilead was slowly making his way to the top of the outpost.

"What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be watching over your falling Kingdom?"

Gilead shrugged, "I’m here to take a break."

He pulled a flask of water out of his inventory and threw it at Lukas,

"I think you should too."

Lukas snatched the water flask out of the air and brought it to his nose.

Giving it a good sniff first, he eyed Gilead for a moment before taking a huge gulp.

’Tasty...’

"It’s good."

Gilead smiled, "Alvi has been pumping out the good stuff in large batches. Even if we are all going to die, no reason to suffer before the grave, right?"

Lukas raised a brow,

"You don’t sound very optimistic now, do you?"

Gilead shrugged and walked towards the railing.

From here, he could see a large portion of the city, or rather what was left of it, sprawled out like a tattered mess.

After weeks of fighting, this entire portion of the city had been reduced to a boiling, fetid wasteland filled with corpses, death and ash.

"I believe it is rather difficult to stay optimistic with these odds." Gilead said calmly.

Lukas snorted and grimaced,

"All this could have been avoided if we have made use of the Dome of Sand’s barrier. Honestly. I don’t know what that idiot Cain was thinking, but he doomed us all."

Gilead was silent for a moment. The outpost was made of wood and it groaned under their weights, filling up the silence as the wind blew by.

It was a surprise it had managed to stay intact despite all the destruction and chaos.

"The Moon Goddess worshipers are taking much of the pressure. Although they are bloodthirsty imbeciles, we can’t deny they are a variable in our favor." Lukas said, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

Gilead turned to him,

"It could be said that they are the only things standing between us and certain death."

Lukas nodded hesitantly,

"But..."

"We are also their targets. ’Give up your gods, or perish like the Devils’ was it?"

Lukas sighed,

"I’m not an advocate for playing the games of the gods, but I really hate when people try telling me what to do."

Gilead chuckled,

"That’s surprising to hear, considering you seem like you are taking orders right now."

Lukas went silent.

Then he snorted,

"This is different. It is all working to my own end, so I don’t mind."

There was a brief lull.

Then Gilead’s expression turned serious. He turned towards Lukas, a strange expression on his face.

"I haven’t known you for a long time, but I believe I have gotten a handle of your character. You are not one to encourage self sacrifice..."

Lukas frowned.

’Where is this conversation going?’ He wondered.

After having fought side-by-side, constantly risking both life and limb on the same battlefield, he had, in a sense, gotten closer to this stoic man.

In a way, he had come to see him as a strange, stoic uncle.

Of course, he would never say this...

After all, it could affect the way his followers saw him.

"If it comes down to it, are you willing to abandon those who revere you to save your own skin?"

Lukas sighed to himself.

This sounded less like he was asking him a question and more of he was trying to flesh out his own thoughts.

Lukas thought about it for a moment.

In the distance, a storm of darkness brewed. However, it was being held back by a crimson tide, itself flow directed by the enormous crimson moon within the Evernight sky.

It was a rather terrifying sight.

’It seems a bit brighter today.’

The crimson moon was an ever present, unmoving blotch in the sky. It lit the world in its wicked scourge, draining the life from the living and condemning the dead in their mortality even more...

"I am the Champion of a Celestial Deity. You probably know what that means, don’t you..." Lukas said after a drawn out silence.

Gilead didn’t answer.

"My life is more important than a thousand— No, ten thousand worshipers to the Light God. I wield a lot of power and I am on par with the strongest Devils as of now. I am an incredibly powerful asset to the world, and to the future of humanity."

Lukas’ voice seethed with pride and arrogance.

"I see..." Gilead said calmly, his expression difficult to read.

A derisive smile appeared on Lukas’ face as he snickered,

"But you know what? I don’t really give a shit about all that. The gods? Fuck them. These blasted Devils? Fuck them too. Fuck that bastard Cain as well for having me deal with this crap."

He turned to Gilead, a fierce pride burning in the depths of his eyes and soul.

"I’m not going to bother answering your question. Because I don’t believe I’m going to die, or a situation that requires me to sacrifice the lives of so many will arise. You are thinking too deep about it." He said with a cold snort then turned back to watch, his hands gripping the railing.

Gilead laughed bitterly,

"Isn’t that too optimistic? Do you really believe those words? Wouldn’t it be easier to bear the wills of the deceased entrusted to you and live to fight another day?"

Lukas sighed and shook his head,

"That’s what a coward would do. And I am no coward."

He turned towards Gilead,

"And I’m sure you aren’t too. Right?"

Gilead went silent.

He had once borne the moniker of ’Guardian’. One who protects life with a shield, and one who executes evil with a sword.

For a time, the idea of running has never existed to him.

But in these days of darkness, it was impossible for some of the black echoes not to reach his heart.

"Of course I won’t," He said after some time has passed.

Lukas nodded,

"Good. Because of you try to run, I know that bastard, Cain will hunt you down."

Gilead erupted into a hearty laugh.

Indeed, he absolutely couldn’t take even one step back.

"Thank you. You’ve helped me clear up my mind."

Lukas snorted, "What the hell are you doing, getting all sentimental with me? I’m not your buddy, old man."

"Eh? Are you sure about that? I think we might be buddies now." Gilead said with a calm smile.

Lukas snorted.

Suddenly, a presence appeared behind them.

The sound of wings flapping made them turn around simultaneously.

"What’s wrong?" Gilead asked, his expression turning serious.

’Already in work mode, huh...’ Lukas thought to himself.

Abigail was dressed in loose fitted battle gear, riding upon her tiger-like Aether Beast mount. The creature had undergone some changes associated it now appeared to be more imposing.

It had also grown wings. To her left and her right, the Earth and Sky wards floated.

Abigail’s expression was dark,

"The Moon Goddess worshipers are launching a hard counter against the Devils. They’ve managed to push them back."

Gilead and Lukas exchanged wide-eyed glances,

"What? How is that possible?" Lukas asked with raised brows. Something about the way she spoke told him the situation was not that simple.

Abigail pointed at the sky,

"Look up."

He slowly lifted his eyes to the sky.

Then he froze in shock.

He had not noticed the change at all.

"When did the moon become so bright?"

The entire world has become lit up with the crimson light of the blood moon.

It was so bright, in fact, that the darkness of the Evernight had been driven away.

"With so many people dying over the last two weeks, man and Devil alike, it has finally gathered enough energy." Abigail said with a sigh.

Suddenly, the world began to tremble.

Thrown off balance, Lukas gripped hard unto the railing.

Even after a long time, the rumbling and shaking didn’t stop.

"Damn it. What is it this time?!"

He managed to regain his footing and turned towards the origin of the tremors.

There, right at the center of the city, the Devil Spire, an enormous protrusion that had become the symbol of calamity for all humans within the former City of Zoan had begun to produce a thick black smoke that bled into the skies in an attempt to drown out the crimson light.

The forces of light and darkness battled in the skies for a long time as the humans watched in silent horror before finally settling into a state of chaotic balance.

The red skies filled with pitch black clouds boiled over.

The world was drenched in blood red light and darkness at the same time.

Lukas glanced down at his body.

A terribly strange force afflicted his body much worse than he had ever felt. A deep weakness touched upon the depths of his being and soul.

He glanced to the side and noticed Gilead wore a strange expression as well.

The others had dropped from the sky and landed on their feet into the outpost.

"Whatever is happening right now, the Moon Goddess worshipers seem to have the upper hand at the moment, but that could change at any time. So..."

Lukas’ expression turned strange,

"So we should seize the chance. Is that what you are saying?"

"To put it bluntly, yes. If either one of those parties win, we will be in for a difficult time."

Lukas clicked his tongue and turned to Gilead,

"Looks like that damned Cain might have been up to something. So? What do you think?"

Gilead’s cold expression seemed a bit sinister under the red glare coming from the heavens,

"Prepare to move act. I believe the final stage of this war has begun."

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